Monday, December 09, 2013

Hand Spun Yarn

My last few shows have made me realize how unique and special what I do with wool is. There was another spinner at the Plowshares festival and I made it a point to visit her booth. Most people don't know what a fleece is, or that wool comes from sheep, mohair comes from a goat, angora comes from a rabbit, etc. Many people asked me if I was spinning alpaca. I have to hand it to the packy people - they get the word out about their animals. No, I am not spinning alpaca. I find myself expounding on the advantages of wool versus alpaca, like the fact that it is rain resistant, fire resistant and it BREATHES. If I wore an alpaca sweater out to chores in the winter, and I have tried it, I would have to tear it off me before I cooked. Now a little alpaca mixed with wool is just fine. I tell people that Wool is the Mother of All Fibers, it is the skeleton on which all the "exotics" hang. Spinning in public gives me an opportunity to turn them on to wool and natural fibers. I am planning on doing a lot of spinning in the next few months, between stoking the wood stove, hauling water and forking hay.

1 comment:

Martha
said...

I'm with you, Maggie. If I'm going to wear an alpaca sweater it has to be thin yarn and lacey or I roast. That's why I like your roving - wool, with just a few extras to jazz it up...Martha (I made the red sweater I showed you at Rhinebeck)